Stars
by thelastingsacrifice
Summary: Sometimes home is a little closer than you think. ShaunDes if you squint; fluffy sort of drabble.


_Tap. Tap. Tap._

It was the sound of fingers pressing down on the keys of a laptop—a sound that Desmond had become well acquainted with. At this point, the gentle sound of keys being pressed down had become something like a lullaby to him. Taking a deep breath, Desmond closed his eyes and rolled onto his stomach, burying his face into the pillow and trying to focus on the tapping sound.

"_Ezio. Why aren't you paying attention to me? Are you mad at me for some reason? What did I do?"_

And yet, despite the rhythmic tapping, he couldn't drown out that voice. Apparently tonight Leonardo was distressed, his voice going a bit higher than usual. If he was to pull his face out of his pillow, he knew what he would see. A small scowl as Leonardo attempted to seem angry, though he would be wringing his hat in his hands in a nervous manner. His blue eyes would be wide, filled with worry, and possibly fear depending upon the situation.

"_Ezio! Why won't you answer me? Please, what's wrong? Talk to me."_

With a groan, Desmond forced himself to his feet, shedding the sleeping bag. Shaking his head, the dark haired man blindly stumbled through the dark room, breathing hard and doing his best not to look at Leonardo. It was hard though. Everywhere he turned, he could see the painter, staring at him with those scared, questioning eyes.

"I don't have your answers! I'm not Ezio! I'm Desmond," Desmond whispered, gritting his teeth and giving a shake of his head. He had to get out of here. Interacting with the ghosts was never the right thing to do, it only made them stronger. Stumbling out of the room, Desmond nearly crashed into the first open room as he fled memories that didn't belong to him.

"Desmond, there is such thing as knocking," came an all too familiar voice. Panting, Desmond slowly raised his head and rolled his eyes. He should have guessed that _Shaun_ would be awake at this time of night. "Also, on the subject of manners, you may want to learn the proper visiting hours. While your company is always…amusing, I suppose, this certainly is not the appropriate hour for it." Shaun prattled, not taking his attention off of his laptop screen.

"Nice to see you too, Shaun," Desmond muttered, ambling over to the redhead and sneaking a glance at his computer screen. He could still feel Leonardo staring at him, demanding answers, but the painter's presence was fainter now that Desmond had something to focus on. "What are you doing up so late, anyway? You're always complaining that we work too long and you aren't getting your beauty sleep. Something about bags under the eyes?"

Interestingly enough, as soon as Desmond got close enough to see the computer screen, Shaun flipped to a new window. "I'm simply finishing off my cup of tea. We can't afford to waste anything, especially not tea," Shaun said. There was something edgy about his voice though, almost a panic.

_He's hiding something, but that's obvious enough. What is he hiding though? _

Desmond wasn't sure if that was his thought or not, but at the moment, it didn't matter. "You seem a bit jumpy, Shaun. Hiding something from me?" Desmond asked, feigning a lazy tone and resting his arms on Shaun's shoulders, chin resting on the top of his head.

"Get off of me!" Shaun protested, squirming in protest, throwing out an elbow.

Grunting when the elbow collided with his gut, Desmond took a step back, observing the Union Jack that Shaun had set up as the background for his laptop. Pausing and giving a slight tilt of his head, the dark haired man cast a glance around the small room, eyes settling on the flag that, no matter where they went, was hung with pride.

"You're homesick." It wasn't a question. Turning his attention to Shaun, Desmond allowed a quiet sigh to escape. "You're looking at the London news again, aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," was the snappish reply. The slight slump of Shaun's shoulders was enough to contradict those words though—not that it surprised Desmond. Biting his lip, Desmond glanced around the room, relieved to find that (for the moment) he was alone. "Now, go off to bed. I'm in no mood to deal with you," Shaun said, still staring at the blank tab.

"Come with me." Desmond said, before turning and walking out of the small room.

"Why would I do something like that?" Shaun replied, scoffing a bit.

"Because you're naturally curious, and there are many ways an idiot like me could break something or break myself," Desmond said with a roll of his eyes. It was something that he had heard many times from the red-head—and it worked. Smirking a bit when he heard the sound of a chair being pushed back, Desmond made his way through the old building with a supernatural ease. Within a few moments, Desmond pushed open the doors, stepping out into the night.

"Oh, so this your great surprise? The outside? Marvelous, Desmond, marvelous. Way to waste my time," Shaun grouched, crossing his arms and coming to a stop beside the other man.

"I know you're homesick," Desmond said with a slight sigh. "Look up at the stars, Shaun." Tilting his head back, Desmond watched the stars as they twinkled and danced, waiting until Shaun reluctantly obeyed before going on.

"No matter where you are, the stars…they'll always look like home. No matter what happens, as long as you can see the stars, you'll have a piece of home with you," Desmond muttered, rubbing the back of his neck in a sheepish manner. For a few moments, there was silence between the two man, before a soft snort could be heard from Shaun.

"Who told you that rubbish? That's just pathetic. Stars the same everywhere? Hah." Shaun gave a shake of his head, rolling his eyes.

Glancing over, Desmond allowed a little smirk when he saw that the man's features had softened and that he was looking up at the stars in an almost far-away manner. Shrugging and stuffing his hands in his pockets, Desmond made his way back inside, before pausing.

"Just…remember that, Shaun. No matter how far away you are from home, you'll always have something with you."

And with that, Desmond made his way back inside, leaving Shaun alone with his thoughts. There was a new lightness to him now—maybe he'd be able to get back to sleep. As soon as he could get the smile off of his face, anyway.


End file.
